Romo injured his back during last weekend's game against the Washington Redskins, where he still somehow managed to lead the offense on a nine-play, 87-yard touchdown drive in the come-from-behind victory.

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"He might have had his finest hour against the Redskins last week, what he did at the end of that ballgame under the circumstances," Garrett said. "Pretty special."

Garrett said the team exhausted all options, including rehab and treatment, and that Romo will be placed on injured reserve Friday. Garrett added that the surgery went well, though further details about the surgery have not yet been released by the team. The team did say that surgery to remove a cyst from Romo's back in April is not related to his current injury.

The Dallas Cowboys confirmed Friday that backup quarterback Kyle Orton will get the start on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles. Former Cowboys quarterback Jon Kitna, who was signed earlier this week, will serve as Orton's backup.

"We've been operating as if Kyle Orton is going to be our starting quarterback," Garrett said. "At the same time we were trying to do whatever we could to see if we could help Tony and get him back as quickly as possible. We just felt like this was the best course of action."